Ballast tamping machine



Filed Sept. 6, 1930 Patented Aug. 18, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT owesMAURICE CCLLE'I, OF'PARIS, FRANCE, ASSIGNOR TO LES FILS DALBERT GOLLET,OFCI PARIS, FRANCE, A CORPORATION 013 FRANCE BALLAST TAMPING MACHINEApplication filed September 6, 1930, Serial No. 480,209, and in GermanyOctober 26, 1929.

Ballast tamping machines are know] such as the Collet tamping machineswhere in the hammers are mechanically controlled through a rotaryelectric motor. These machines may be mounted on single-rail trucks, thetwo or four machines carried by each truck being controlled by the sameelectric motor carried by the truck and the axis of which is vertical.These single-rail trucks are preferably connected two by two so as toprevent them from weighing upon the men who are in charge of thehammers. To allow each hammer to be controlled by a single man, theremay be provided a support constituted by a cable secured to the hammernear its centre of gravity and wound over a drum carried by the upperpart of the frame. This drum is secured to its stationary shaft througha spring which halances substantially the weight of the hammer. Theworkman may thus control the hammer without any great effort.

My invention has for its object the execution of an entirely differentsuspension means allowing the control of two hammers instead of one byone workman.

It has also for its object to render useless or at least optional theconnection between the trucks running on the two rails, the

equilibrium of each truck being a very steady one.

My invention has for its further object to do away with the winding drumwhich still requires a certain effort to be made by the workman whenlifting the device for passing from one tie to the next, by using theequilibrium obtained through the respective positions of the two tampingdrums and of the electric motor, with reference to a 4 rocking shaft,use being made of a freely deformable polygon.

My invention has for its further object to allow the workman to use hislegs instead of his arms for moving the trucks from one 4 tie to thenext or along the track whereby he may benefit by the inertia due to hisown weight when acting on the tamping hammers.

My improved machine comprises a singlerail truck with a seat allowingthe workman sitting on it to put his feet on the ground, twoelectromechanically controlled hammers balanced by the weight of themotor being disposed on either side of the workman whereby th latter maywork sitting and cause the truck to be balanced or to advance throughthe sole action of his legs.

In accompanying drawings given by Way of example:

Figure 1 is a side view of the ballast tamping machine;

Figure 2 is a plan View thereof;

Figures 3 and at show diagrammatically the successive positions of thedevice between one tie and the next.

The machine comprises a single-rail truck 1 with a seat 2 for theworkman whose feet rest on the ground and with rollers 14 00- operatingwith the rail. The truck carries M a support 3 for the frame 4 adaptedtof pivot around the trunnions 5. .he frame 4 carries at one end themotor (3 and at the other the arm 7 carryin the hammers. The connectingbar 8 between each hammer and the arm 7 is mounted so as to freelyrotate round the axis of the latter. It is provided with devices such asa pivoting joint 9 and a universal joint 10 allowing the hammer 10 to begiven any desired direction. The; hammer comprises a tool 11 and acontrol'go handle 12 of the usual type. The transmission of the movementof the motor to the hammer is provided as usual through shafts carryingbevel wheels which, for salre of simplicity, have not been illustrated.The truck 1 carries on the other hand a hand-rail 13 the use of whichwill be disclosed later. Figure 3 shows the truck in its position ofuse, the tool 11 bearing against the ballast to be tamped. The e0workman, sitting if desired on the seat 2,acts onthe handle 12 in thedirection 7 or f (Figure 3) according as to whether he wishes to raiseor to lower the tool. For moving the tool towards or away from the axisof the rail R, he moves the handles 12 apart or together as illustratedby the arrows p, p (Figure 2). It should be noted that, when the workmanurges the tool in the direction 7 during operation, after the lou slopeof the tool has been chosen, this causes the hammer to bear against theprism formed by the ballast.

When it is required to pass over the tie A and to move the tool in frontof the tie B (to the left of A in Figure 3), the workman proceeds asfollows. \Vith the help of his legs and by pressing if required the toolhandle in the direction of the arrow 7', he moves the truck backwardsinto the position of Figure 4. When this position is reached, the arm 8is substantially vertical and the weight of the hammer borne by thehand-rail 13 is balanced by the weight of the motor bearing against thehand-rail 13. A comparatively small pressure exerted on the handle 12will make the hammer rock around the hand-rail and disengage the tiewhile the balanced motor rocks backwards. The workman may now push thetruck so as to pass over the tie and bring the hammer into a positionsuch that, by raising the handle 12. he may bring the tool into its newoperative position in front of the tie B. It is apparent that, owing tothe balanc ing of the hammer by the motor which may be as perfect asdesired, the machine may be brought from its operative position in frontof a given tie into its operative position in front of the next by meansof an effort reduced to a minimum to be given out by the workman.

Vhat I claim is 1. A ballast tamping machine adapted to run over onerail comprising a truck, wheels carrying same and lying in substantiallythe same vertical plane, two hammers carried by the truck on either sideof the truck, means for giving them any desired direction in space, amotor controlling and balancing the hammers and a seat carried by thetruck at a height allowing the feet ot'the workman seated on it tobalance the machine and in a longitudinal position such that the hammersare within reach of the workman.

2. A ballast tamping machine comprising a truck, a low seat carriedthereby, a frame carried by the truck and adapted to pivot around anaxis perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the truck, two hammerspivotally secured to said frame on either side of the truck and a motorcarried by the frame and controlling and balancing the hammers.

3. A ballast tamping machine comprising a truck, a low seat carriedthereby, a frame carried by thetruck and adapted to pivot around an axisperpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the truck, a horizontal shaftcarried by the support perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of thetruck, an arm adapted to pivot around each end of the said shaft, ahammer secured through its centre of gravity to each arm, a control rodfor each hammer extending towards the seat and forming a deformablearrangement with the corresponding arm and the horizontal shaft and amotor carried by the frame and controlling and balancing the hammers.

4. A ballast tamping machine comprising a truck, a low seat carriedthereby, aframe carried by the truck and adapted to pivot round an axisperpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the truck, two hammers pivotally secured to said frame on either side of the truck, a motorcarried by the frame and controlling and balancing the hammers, acontrol rod for each hammer extending in front of the seat and a restcarried by the truck for the said rod.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

MAURICE COLLET.

